Holocaust files

"Holocaust archive tells many new stories "

16 miles...16 miles-- of files are going to be made available to victim's families and scholars. This is fascinating to me, as the Holocaust has always been, because it's not only a massive tragedy, but a cautionary tale which we (the human race) seem not to have heeded completely.

I remember my mother taking me to Holocaust memorial services as a child. We had no Jewish blood in my ancestry at all (that I'm aware of), but my mom really has a heartfelt sympathy for any and all who suffer(ed) wrongly. Thankfully, that is one of her traits that I've inherited.

I remember seeing the photos, seeing the translated testimonies of survivors, seeing victims' eyeglasses, shoes, books...each of which held such an amazing energy. Energy that seemed to jump right into me. Seeing these things in front of me instilled within me an empathy that I could never have realized by simply reading the story in a textbook or seeing an aged documentary on the subject. Those each had their impact on me, but seeing survivors speak of their tribulations firsthand...that is a truly incomparable history lesson. I feel lucky that I was able to witness these testimonies. After all, even the youngest of survivors are now elderly and this oral passing of their plights will soon be impossible.

I think any human being with half an ounce of compassion must feel the way I do about genocide. The very thought of it is practically incomprehensible. I seriously cannot fathom such unbridled, unfettered, unwaivering blind hatred. Thank God for that.

It's my greatest hope that we are on the verge of a global sea change in terms of geo-politics and worldviews. I am not nearly as socially aware as I may sound, but it doesn't take a scholar to see that things must change, and soon. I hope it's not just a pipedream.

A Dog's Life

You've gotta love the dog's life. This is Pumba lounging in his favorite spot (well, when he's not on our laps, that is).

Just wait until we have kids. We'll post so many photos your head will spin.

Old acquaintences= new art

I used to collaborate with Mr. David Bovey (not to be confused with David Bowie) on a regular basis. We lost touch quite a while ago until just recently when we reconnected through DeviantArt. Dave posted a great Dr. Strange piece, and I had to color it.

I colored this in Corel Painter IX, then took it into Photoshop CS to add the "bling". Hi res view can be seen here.

What do you think?

Tokyo Police Club

I'm listening to Tokyo Police Club's song "Citizen of Tomorrow", supplied from the amazingly awesome KEXP Song of the Day Podcast

The singer sounds just like John K. Samson from the Weakerthans, but alas, after further investigation, I found that the singer for TPC is Dave Monks. It's uncanny how similar their singing styles (and even lyrics) are.

Either way, it's some good listening, so...check out KEXP's podcast. You won't be sorry.

Singing Pugs...

So...this is a cautionary tale. 

Wake up when the alarm goes off. 
Otherwise, your wife in the bathroom with the radio on, combined 
with your dog barking will seep into your morning dreams and combine 
to create (in your dream, that is) a singing dog. 

Fun stuff. 

Third time's a charm!

Bam...another blog. I'm going through them like underwear. Faster, sadly. 

I've created a new dance called the Blog Shuffle. What's that you say? I'm not the first one?? Well...shucks.

If you want to see my previous ramblings, they are all located HERE.